Growing protein rich food for chicken

[Maiahr]

I have been looking into ways of growing my own protein rich food for the chicken.
I have tried superworms. Found them really addictive, chicken go crazy about them, but just as someone mentioned they have fat...
So I am now looking into several other options - Lemna, grasshoppers and BSF larvae. Now BSF larvae are not available in Bulgaria so I would like to hear other people's opinions/experience before trying to import them.

 

[saysfaa]

Lemna is invasive in a lot of places in Europe including Bulgaria. If you already have it, using it seems like a good idea but you might rethink using it if you don't already have it.

Have you tried using it already? How have you harvested it? Stored it? Fed it? It looks worth looking into.

Have you considered raising rabbits to feed the chickens? Or farming fish where your lemna is or would be?

 

[DanDi27]

BSF larvae are good source of protein. Aside from that, it has calcium too that other insects do not have. I've been using it for a while now and it helps my chicken improve their health as well as to lay eggs. Just don't give them too much. 10% is enough per day.

 

[Maiahr]

@saysfaa I haven't started with Lemna yet, just investigating options. I do have a 2sq.m pond where I was planning to grow it... Rabbits - I don't like, plus I don't think they will survive the dogs and cages etc. is noty thing, and yeah I cannot cull a rabbit... Fish in the Lemna pond - sounds like a good idea, though on 2sq.m???

 

[Maiahr]

@DanDi27 ah.. you have them in the USA... So could you compare BSF larvae with superworms?

 

[DanDi27]

@DanDi27 ah.. you have them in the USA... So could you compare BSF larvae with superworms?

The benefits your chicken gets in both worms are almost the same. They have fats and protein, but what makes the BSFL special is the calcium content that superworms do not have. We know that in some countries, they usually used oyster shells, but if you used bsfl you don't need to purchase oyster shells anymore since it has calcium already.

 

[Maiahr]

Thank you @DanDi27 .
BTW I have started with Lemna...chicken don't like it!
I still cannot find BSFL here.

 

[RiverOtter]

Have you looked into earthworms?
https://eorganic.org/node/8103

 

[Maiahr]

Have you looked into earthworms?

Uh, they take 2 years to reach reproductive maturity...

 

[raingarden]

If you set up for growing BSF you may find they are already there. They home in on the smell of rotting meat. They are never abundant like house flies but you only need a couple to get the colony started.

Duckweed is mostly fiber. There are planty of studies on feeding it to all sorts of livestock. In most cases, you would not want to add more than about 10%.